Witch Hunt by Annie Bellet

Imagine you are an all powerful god. Through the use of your voice you can sing things into existence. You can speak a word and things are uncreated. Nothing is beyond the power of your voice. You even created the very world through your singing. Now, imagine you have been struck mute, and are forced to live among those you created in the world you fashioned.

That is the basic premise behind the fantasy novella, Witch Hunt, by Annie Bellet. The story covers the path of “Killer,” as she travels with a ragtag group of adventurers. She must complete certain tasks if she is to ever get her powers back, but she cannot communicate with her party to tell them this. They travel with her as a member of their adventuring group with no idea who she is, or what she needs.

First, a note about the length. The story is a fairly short read. I would guess it at around 40-50 pages if printed in a traditional paperback format. I read it in a single sitting. I do not typically buy works this short, but I did not realize it was this short when I grabbed it. It is part of a larger series known as the “The Gryphonpike Chronicles,” so if you read and enjoy it, there are currently three more books in the series.

The story was very much like following a game of Dungeons and Dragons. First you had the introduction to the characters, and then they traveled quickly to the first scene where a stranger gives them a quest. They then head out to fulfill the quest, which is to kill a pair of witches and save the town. It continues in this way walking through like a typical D&D quest inside a larger campaign.

I enjoyed the short read and may in the future get the other books in the series. The editing was fairly good, but there were one or two places where I had to back track and read a passage again.

Overall I recommend people who enjoy short, easy reads where the heroes are not perfect and the story is fairly linear to grab this book and the rest of the series.